Alaska Air Group’s Q3 revenue rose 14% to $4.3 billion on just 2.4% more capacity… and the company still lost money. Fuel did most of the damage, but Hawaiʻi made the list too. On the earnings call, Chief Commercial Officer Andrew Harrison called Hawaiʻi a two-point headwind for the whole system, with negative unit revenue in both Q2 and Q3. That comment didn’t land well here at home. Locally, Hawaiian Airlines CEO Diana Birkett Rakow pointed to fuel, a soft market, and a rough weather year.
Then came the reassurance tour. On Oct. 26 in Honolulu, Alaska President Shane Tackett said Hawaiʻi is about a third of company revenue, and the commitment to Hawaiian is forever, backed by $600 million over five years for a new HNL lounge and upgraded A330 cabins. Exhibit A for “growing the brand” is new Seattle nonstops to Osaka and Papeete on Hawaiian A330s, markets Hawaiian built from Honolulu decades ago. The Hawaiʻi schedule stays flat.
Four days later, Alaska announced it’s cutting about 200 management jobs, 46 of them in Hawaiʻi, after CEO Ben Minicucci warned it could lose up to $700 million this year. The company says the cuts aren’t merger-related. Fair enough. But “forever” had a pretty short news cycle.
Meanwhile, HTA just told legislators that restoring Melbourne nonstops is a priority. That’s the same route Qantas launched in 2025 and pulled this January. Hawaiian hasn’t brought back Brisbane either. For hoteliers counting on an international rebound, watch where the next widebody goes, not the speeches. 😉
Want to dive deeper? PBN on Alaska’s Q3 | Committed | Layoffs
